A baseboard is defined as a wooden trim or other material that is positioned flush to the base of a wall and the floor surface. Baseboards are also known as floor molding and floor trim. Baseboards typically have a top edge, vertical and/or curves, grooves, and additional trim such as quarter round, shoe molding, or similar small trim. Cleaning all these baseboard areas is difficult by hand and often requires the person to be on their hands and knees on the floor.
Pushing foam or sponges into the wall also requires a great deal of effort and is tiring. Brooms and mop cleaning devices are an alternative but are also inferior because they are not designed to access edges and with repeated cleanings they eventually damage the painted or wallpapered surfaces of the wall. Whichever cleaning method is selected, the surface area to be cleaned requires many repeated cleaning swipes to fully access the baseboard fillets since it's difficult to access the edges, recesses, and grooves simultaneously and protect the floor, baseboard, and wall finishes.
Baseboards can also be difficult to access when located behind headboards, in laundry rooms, or behind large furniture.
The inventor of the present invention has an engineering background and has put an enormous amount of design, prototyping, and testing that addresses the negative aspects concerning prior art and current baseboard cleaning methods and devices.
A search of the prior art did not disclose any patents that read directly on the claims of the instant invention; however, the following references were considered related:
U.S. Pat. No. 4,024,597, issued in the name of Fouracre;
U.S. Patent Application no. 2006/0182487 A1, published in the name of Sandoval;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,371,912, issued in the name of Hall;
U.S. Pat. No. 5,261,139, issued in the name of Lewis;
U.S. Pat. No. 4,299,004, issued in the name of Lancaster;
U.S. Pat. No. 2,989,763, issued in the name of Bradley;
U.S. Patent Application no. 2004/0187238 A1, published in the name of Young;
U.S. Pat. No. 3,533,120, issued in the name of De Mercado;
U.S. Pat. No. 4,783,872, issued in the name of Burhoe; and
U.S. Pat. No. 4,691,403, issued in the name of Scharf.
This application presents claims and embodiments that fulfill a need or needs not yet satisfied by the products, inventions and methods previously or presently available. In particular, the claims and embodiments disclosed herein describe an apparatus for cleaning baseboards, the apparatus comprising: a cleaning head comprising an upper section and a lower section; a bi-directionally adjustable handle; and a plurality of pads coupled to the cleaning head in a stacked fashion, the apparatus of the present invention providing unanticipated and nonobvious combination of features distinguished from the products, devices, apparatuses, inventions and methods preexisting in the art. The applicant is unaware of any product, device, method, disclosure or reference that discloses the features of the claims and embodiments disclosed herein, and as more fully described below.